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May 21, 2026 07:38+06:00
Can former USMNT hopeful Brian Gutierrez be a game changer for Mexico? Five keys ahead of El Tri’s first pre-World Cup friendly vs. Ghana
FEATURES | Analysis | Mexico vs Ghana | Mexico | Ghana | Friendlies | J. Aguirre | E. Alvarez | G. Mora | B. Gutierrez | A. Gonzalez
Brian Gutierrez’s growing role, Raul Rangel’s No. 1 case, and Edson Alvarez’s fitness are among the key storylines as Mexico face Ghana in Puebla on Friday. GOAL looks at five keys to watch in El Tri’s first pre-World Cup friendly.
Puebla knows what a World Cup countdown feels like. Estadio Cuauhtemoc was part of the story in 1970 and 1986, a venue touched by two tournaments that shaped Mexico’s football memory. Now, four decades after it last staged World Cup matches, Puebla becomes the next stop in El Tri’s final stretch toward 2026.
Mexico face Ghana on Friday in their first pre-World Cup friendly since Javier Aguirre opened an early camp that has already revealed the urgency around this team. It will not be a full-strength version of El Tri. Several Europe-based players are still being integrated, while others remain on modified timelines. But the picture is starting to look more complete: Mateo Chavez, Guillermo Ochoa, Jorge Sanchez, Julian Araujo, Cesar Montes, Luis Chavez, and Edson Alvarez have already reported to camp, giving Aguirre more pieces to test before the final decisions arrive.
This fine-tuning period will happen away from Mexico City, but not too far from it. Puebla offers a different kind of stage: close enough to feel connected to the pressure of the World Cup opener at Estadio Azteca, but distant enough to give Mexico the possibility of an emotional reset. The city is also scheduled to host Spain in the coming days, turning Estadio Cuauhtemoc into a meaningful checkpoint in the final days before the tournament.
El Tri has not lost in 2026 after five friendlies, and the results against Portugal and Belgium gave Aguirre reason to believe the team is arriving in great form. Here are GOAL’s five keys to watch as Mexico host Ghana in Puebla.
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Is Raul Rangel ready to own the No. 1 role?
Recent evidence suggests Raul Rangel will start against Ghana. If he does, it will only reinforce the idea that the Chivas goalkeeper is Mexico’s choice for the World Cup opener. But Ochoa’s arrival keeps the conversation alive. If Ochoa starts one of these final friendlies, the battle for the starting job will immediately reignite. If Rangel starts all of them, there will be little doubt left: the job belongs to him.
Ochoa, for his part, has not arrived as a ceremonial figure. He made that clear when speaking about the final stretch with Mexico. “The truth is that I’m here, I’m in this final stretch, and of course I’m trying to fight and compete because, like all of my teammates, we all want to be in the starting XI on June 11,” he said. “And if it’s my turn to play, I’ll be at 100 percent. If it’s not my turn, I’ll be at 100 percent. That’s how we all have to be. I’m excited and enjoying it.”
That is the tension of Mexico’s goalkeeper room. Rangel represents the present decision and the next cycle. Ochoa represents history and one final World Cup push. Ghana may not settle the debate completely, but it can make Aguirre’s intentions much clearer.
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Can Brian Gutierrez and Gilberto Mora bring Mexico much needed creativity?
Gutierrez has already logged 292 minutes for Mexico since making his one-time switch from the USMNT setup to El Tri. In that short window, he has become one of the team’s most interesting attacking pieces of 2026. Now comes the next layer: seeing how he connects with Mora.
Mora is expected to gather his first Mexico minutes of 2026 during these upcoming games, and the idea of watching him combine with Gutierrez has already stirred excitement among supporters.
Mexico has often lacked creative clarity in the final third. The next few days should help determine whether Mora and Gutierrez can fit together in a possible starting XI. We already know what Gutierrez offers in the final third – explosiveness and an impressive long-range shot. But if Mora shines in these pre-World Cup friendlies by adding more pause to El Tri’s possession game and connecting well with El Tri’s attackers, Mexican fans will make their opinion known.
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Can Puebla offer El Tri the emotional reset they need?
The distance from Mexico City to Puebla is not enormous, but emotionally, this match could feel far away from some of the uncomfortable moments Mexico have experienced on home soil. Recent games at Estadio Azteca and Estadio Corona have carried tension. The scoreless draw against Portugal in March brought boos and even the derogatory chant directed toward Rangel, Mexico’s own goalkeeper. That is exactly the kind of atmosphere Aguirre cannot afford as the World Cup opener approaches.
Puebla, then, becomes a chance to test whether the connection between team and supporters is being repaired. Mexico needs the crowd to push, not punish. It needs the sound of “Cielito Lindo” to arrive naturally during the match, the kind of moment that reminds players why Aguirre has spoken so often about restoring pride in the national team.
The matches in Puebla and Toluca before the June 11 debut against South Africa should be treated as extensions of the World Cup itself. Aguirre has to prove that the early camp was worth it, but the players also have to show on the pitch that those extra days at Mexico’s training grounds will pay dividends come June 11.
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If Edson Alvarez plays, where will Aguirre slot him?
Alvarez reported to Mexico’s camp early after his loan spell with Fenerbahce came to an end. As one of the team’s captains, his presence matters. But his form and fitness remain one of Aguirre’s most delicate questions.
Alvarez needs minutes after undergoing successful ankle surgery in February. His time in Turkey did not end in ideal fashion, and asking him to recover his best level before June 11 feels complicated. That leaves Aguirre with a major tactical decision: is Alvarez still Mexico’s central defensive midfielder, or is he now better used as another center-back option?
Erik Lira’s performances in the March friendlies were among the best in the squad. Against opponents who allow Mexico to take the initiative and control possession, Lira may be the cleaner option in midfield. Against teams that can keep the ball away from Mexico or force the game into duels, Alvarez’s defensive pedigree becomes harder to ignore.
That is why Puebla matters. If Alvarez plays, the question will not only be whether he looks fit. It will be whether he can still pull the strings in midfield, or whether Mexico’s best version requires him to drop into the backline alongside Johan Vasquez and Montes.
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Can Armando “La Hormiga” Gonzalez make his case to start?
Raul Jimenez, Santiago Gimenez, German Berterame, and Julian Quiñones are still not in camp, leaving Gonzalez and Guillermo Martinez as Mexico’s available strikers against Ghana. Gonzalez will likely start in Puebla after completing a 2025-26 season with Chivas in which he scored 24 goals.
His rise has already made him one of the young players to watch in Aguirre’s final roster, but now the question becomes larger: can he become more than a developmental piece? Against Portugal at Estadio Azteca, Gonzalez had a clear chance to score the winning goal. Those moments matter. For a young striker trying to earn trust before a World Cup, one finish can change the way a coaching staff sees him.
Every minute from now until the opener will be crucial for his development. His future after the World Cup also remains open. Does he stay in Liga MX? Does a move to Europe begin to take shape? Goals in these friendlies, and possibly at the World Cup, could bring clarity fast.
For now, Ghana is not just another test. For “La Hormiga,” it is a chance to make Aguirre uncomfortable in the best way possible.